Skeleton skirt



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500p Skiff Pafenied Jug. 9, $59,

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inventor.

Witnesses- UNITED STATES ATENT OFFICE.

EDWARD F. VVOODWARD, OF BROOKLYN, NEWV YORK.

SKELETON SKIRT.

Specification of Letters Patent No. 25,078, dated August 9, 1859.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EDWARD F. 001)- WARD, of the city of Brooklyn, county of Kings and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in the Extension of Skirts of WVomens Dresses; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings and to the letters of reference thereon.

The present fashion for womens dresses requires that an under skirt or petticoat made of some elastic and incumbrous material should be worn to distend the bottom of the skirt on all sides, and particularly the hinder portion, and gradually decreasing such extension to the girth. The material most preferred for this purpose is made of metallic band or wires covered with cotton fabric and consisting of a series of hoops or rings of such covered material, and of properly graduated diameters, and placed one above another and horizontally; and being attached together and secured or suspended by perpendicular bands of tape, to which the hoops are sewed or otherwise properly secured. This skirt is at the same time the most elastic and of the least weight of all the contrivances for the purpose; but for most dress fabrics it fails to distend the dress properly behind, where from the accumulation of fold in the material the hooped skirt is liable to be weighed down and collapsed, and giving to the dress the reverse of what fashion demands to wit a slight train like curve thereby adding grace to the figure and carriage of the wearer.

The extension skirt above described forms no part of my invention by itself. But the nature of my invention consists in the employment of an extending elastic sectional skirt, attached at the top and sides to the extension skirt behind, thereby making a double skirt at that part, and forming from the intersecting lines two sections of circles of nearly equal radii, whose centers are separated according to the distance required, and forming thereby a strong, elas tic, and reliable bow string action which seems to meet all requirement in such a contrivance.

This attachment when secured to the skirt, bears a shape and appearance similar to what would be made by cutting an ordinary -skirts, when complete it should extend from one side around to the other side, giving the proper distension behind at the bottom, and decreasing with a graceful outline upward to the hips. Around the top and sides strong tape is well secured, and which is pierced with eyelet holes, or any other plan may be used for securing the sectional extenderssliding plates or rings may be employed with convenience. The hoops to both skirts should coincide to facilitate the applying as well as the action of this attaclnnent. It will be readily seen that the extension may be varied as the fancy of the wearer may dictate, by carrying the sectional skirt forward or backward on the line where it is secured thus throwing the train farther or less behind as may be desired.

I have described the method I have found to answer but for constructing this train extender, but it may be made of other material and it may be attached to skirts of woven fabrics with advantage. In useit will be found to prevent the dress from trailing on the ground, and whether the wearer be Standing or walking it will give to the skirt a tastefully prolonged or train like appearance.

In the drawing Figure I represents the extension section displayed as or nearly a plain surface, and Fig. II represents it in blue lines as applied to an ordinary elastic circular extending skirt, shown in red lines to afford clearer distinctions to the drawing.

I do not claim any of these well known contrivances which are worn under womens dresses, and usually tied around the waist to distend or give particular shape to the hips or upper portion of the dress.

hat I claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent is The sectional extension skirt, when combined with and attached to the circular skirt, the whole being arranged and constructed in the manner, and for the purpose set forth. Y

EDVARD F. WVOODWARD.

In presence of- J. R. HYDE, T. 1 PRICE. 

